Abbey Theatre

The Abbey Theatre, also known as the National Theatre of Ireland, is located in Dublin, in Ireland. The Abbey first opened its doors to the public on 27 December, 1904 and, despite losing its original building to a fire in 1951, it has continued to stage performances more or less continuously to the present day. The Abbey was the first state-subsidised theatre in the English-speaking world; from 1925 onwards it received an annual subsidy from the Irish Free State.

The early years

The new theatre found itself a great popular success, with large crowds turning out for most productions. It was also fortunate in having, in Synge, one of the foremost English-language dramatists of the day as a key member. The theatre also staged plays by eminent or soon to be eminent authors including Yeats, Lady Gregory, Moore, Martyn, Padraic Colum, Oliver St John Gogarty, F. R. Higgins, Thomas MacDonagh, (one of the leaders of the Easter Rebellion in 1916), T. C. Murray and Lennox Robinson. Many of these authors also served on the board, with the result that the Abbey gained an enduring reputation as a writers' theatre.

Related Topics:
Padraic Colum - Oliver St John Gogarty - F. R. Higgins - Thomas MacDonagh - Easter Rebellion - 1916 - T. C. Murray - Lennox Robinson

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However, things were to take a turn for the worst in January 1907 with the opening of his The Playboy of the Western World. Egged on by nationalists who believed that the theatre was not sufficiently political and with the pretext of a perceived slight on the virtue of Irish womanhood in the use of the word 'shift', a significant portion of the crowd rioted, causing the remainder of the play to be acted out in dumbshow. Nationalist ire was further provoked by the decision to call in the police. Although press opinion soon turned against the rioters and the protests (now known as the Playboy riots) petered out, the Abbey was shaken and Synge's next (and last completed) play The Tinker's Wedding (1908) was not staged for fear of further disturbances.

Related Topics:
January - 1907 - Nationalists - 1908

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That same year, the Fay brothers' association with the theatre ended when they emigrated to the United States and the day-to-day management of the theatre became the responsibility of Lennox Robinson. On 7 May, 1910, when all the other theatres in the city closed as a mark of respect on the death of King Edward VII, Robinson kept the Abbey open. The relationship with Annie Horniman was already strained, and when she found out about Robinson's decision, she decided to finally sever her connection with the Abbey. By her own estimate, she had spent £10,350 of her own money on the project, a considerable sum for the time.

Related Topics:
United States - 7 May - 1910 - King Edward VII

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With the loss of Horniman, Synge and the Fays, the Abbey under Robinson tended somewhat to drift along and suffered from falling public interest and box office returns. This trend was halted for a time by the emergence of Sean O'Casey as an heir to Synge. O'Casey's career as a dramatist began with The Shadow of a Gunman, staged by the Abbey in 1923. This was followed by Juno and the Paycock (1924) and The Plough and the Stars (1926). This last play resulted in riots reminiscent of those that had greeted the Playboy nine years earlier. Once again, scared off by the public reaction, the Abbey rejected O'Casey's next play and he emigrated shortly thereafter.

Related Topics:
Sean O'Casey - 1923 - 1924 - 1926

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